Home Office

Deportation: Young People

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what arrangements for care in their home countries are made for those deported on reaching the age of 18.

Lord Bates: Those who depart the UK with the additional support of an assisted package may qualify for a combination of cash and in-kind support, depending on their individual circumstances and those in the country of return. Asylum seekers may qualify for assistance equivalent to a maximum value of £1,500, and families up to £2,000 per family members.

Asylum: EU Law

Lord Green of Deddington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the EU directives on asylum into which they have opted, and what are those from which they have opted out.

Lord Bates: Between 1999 and 2005, several measures harmonising common minimum standards for asylum were adopted. The six measures were the Dublin II Regulation, the EURODAC Regulation, the Temporary Protection Directive, the Reception Conditions Directive, the Qualification Directive and the Asylum Procedures Directive. The UK opted into all of these Directives.The Reception Conditions Directive, the Qualifications Directive and the Asylum Procedures Directives were later revised but the UK did not opt into the revised versions and remains bound by the original Directives.The Dublin II Regulation and EURODAC Regulation were also revised and the UK opted into the revised versions.The Temporary Protection Directive has not been revised and the UK remains bound by the original Directive.

Passports: Interviews

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 8 December (HL4116), how many personal interviews with adults applying for a passport for the first time were conducted in each calendar year from 2007 to 2015 inclusive.

Lord Bates: The table below shows the number of interviews conducted in each calendar year since 2007. The lower figures for 2007 reflect the pilot and roll out of the new interview process for all first-time passport applicants and the figures for 2015 are up to week ending 20 December.Year Number of Interviews200718,1602008293,3372009261,5932010296,4342011269,5872012273,6802013283,2842014253,1562015221,759

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

India: Dalits

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the decision by the state government of Andhra Pradesh to enable the enforcement of the Andhra Pradesh Devadasis (Prohibition of Dedication) Act 1988 through the Andhra Pradesh Devadasis Prohibition of Dedication Rules 2015, and of the impact of that decision on Dalit women and girls in that state.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: This is ultimately a matter for the Union Government of India and state government of Andhra Pradesh. The UK has worked closely with the Union and state governments in India to strengthen women’s rights and welcomes any new legislation which seeks to further protect women and girls.

India: Dalits

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they plan to make to the state government of Telangana about following the example of the state government of Andhra Pradesh in introducing rules to prevent the sexual exploitation of Dalit women and girls through the Devadasi and Jogini systems of ritualised prostitution.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: This is ultimately a matter for the Union Government of India and state governments. Nevertheless, the British Government has worked closely with the Union and state governments in India to strengthen the protection of women’s rights and would welcome any legislative change that provided further protection to women and girls.

Adbullah Hasan al-Zaher

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Saudi Arabia in relation to the death sentence imposed on Abdullah ah-Zaher; and whether they will consider taking action in the event of representations on this, and similar cases, going unheeded.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The British Government is very concerned about the case of Abdullah al-Zaher. We have raised these cases at a senior level in the Government of Saudi Arabia. The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and in every country, especially in cases which do not meet the minimum standards defined by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. This includes the execution of a minor and the use of the death penalty for a crime which is not deemed “the most serious”. We take every opportunity to make the Saudi authorities aware of our views.

Somalia: International Assistance

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the percentage of the funds pledged by all nations through the 2013 Somali Compact that has been spent.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Somalia’s Aid Coordination Unit (ACU), supported by the World Bank and UN Development Programme, has reported that donors are meeting and sometimes exceeding their pledges. The 2013 pledge to implement the New Deal was 2.4 billion US dollars. ACU estimate that donors spent 3.2 billion US dollars across 2014 and 2015, exceeding the pledge by 33 per cent. According to ACU, donors have consistently delivered 1 billion US dollars annually in Overseas Development Assistance, accompanied by significant resources for peacekeeping and military aid.

Human Rights

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 14 December (HL4086), whether their next Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report in April 2016 will contain an assessment of the effectiveness and outputs of project funding on human rights and democracy in their priority countries in the most recent full year; and if so, whether it will be subject to independent audit.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The 2015 Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report will include references to project funding on human rights and democracy in priority countries where appropriate. All Foreign and Commonwealth Office funding, including human rights and democracy project funding, is subject to robust monitoring and evaluation, and like all government spending is subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to help the combatants in Yemen to agree a ceasefire and to remove the external blockade, in particular of supplies.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK welcomes the positive progress made at UN-facilitated talks held between 15 and 20 December 2015 and the ceasefire that commenced on 15 December including the intention to extend this until 28 December. We fully support the UN’s efforts to return to an inclusive political process and strongly encourage all parties to the conflict to respect the ceasefire, which will allow urgent medical and humanitarian aid to reach those in need. The engagement of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), our Ambassadors, and the UK Special Envoy to Yemen Sir Alan Duncan, with key Yemeni actors has supported this process. We are also providing financial support to the UN Special Envoy’s Office. As Yemenis are highly reliant on food and fuel imports for their basic needs (food, health, water, electricity), one of our top priorities is to help commercial shipping return to pre-conflict levels. We welcomed the Government of Yemen’s commitment in October to allow commercial ships access to Yemen. The number of ships has increased in recent weeks: over 50 ships have berthed in both October and November. However, commercial imports are still far below pre-crisis levels. We will continue to monitor this closely and are funding the new UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism along with the US, EU and Netherlands to speed up clearance processes.

Iraq: Religious Freedom

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 16 December (HL4270 and HL4271), whether they have asked, or will ask, the government of Iraq to end the requirement for religious affiliations to be shown on identity cards.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The current National Identity Law does not require Iraqi citizens to mention their religious or tribal affiliations. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior has removed religious affiliations from new identity cards.We will continue to encourage the Government of Iraq to ensure freedom of religion or belief in Iraq.

Burundi: Violence

Lord Bruce of Bennachie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the recent violence in Burundi.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK is deeply concerned by the recent violence in Burundi and supports the East African Community mandated dialogue, facilitated by Uganda, as the only route to a sustainable and inclusive solution. The UK has been active in its response, working alongside our international partners. Under the UK’s Presidency the UN Security Council approved Resolution 2248 which provided for the deployment of a UN team to Burundi. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (Mr Duddridge), visited the region between 15 - 17 December with a focus on Burundi. Mr Duddridge discussed the recent violence with the Burundian Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe, and Major General Prime Niyongabo, Army Chief Of Staff. In Uganda, Mr Duddridge had separate meetings with President Museveni and Foreign Minister Kutesa. Additionally, he spoke by phone with Defence Minister Kiyonga. Mr Duddridge also met Rwandan Foreign Minister Mushikiwabo to underline the need for constructive engagement to solve the Burundi crisis. We have intensified our coordination with African Union (AU) countries alongside international partners. We welcome the AU’s Peace and Security Committee communiqué of 18 December which authorised a deployment of AU troops to Burundi to stabilise the security situation. We are exploring what more we can do to support the AU’s leadership at the UN and with our EU partners.

Ethiopia: Demonstrations

Lord Bruce of Bennachie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Ethiopia in the wake of reported deaths following demonstrations in and around Addis Ababa.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The British Government is deeply concerned about the demonstrations in Oromia and reported deaths of a number of students. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for International Development, my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd), raised our concerns with the Ethiopian deputy prime minister on 11 December and urged the authorities to exercise restraint. Our chargé d'affaires repeated this message with the Ethiopian state minister for foreign affairs on 15 December. Our Ethiopia travel advice was updated on 18 December to reflect our concerns about the security situation in the affected areas. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and raise our concerns with the Ethiopian government, including on the use of force.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Film: Classification Schemes

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why they do not require British Board of Film Classification categories for films shown on television, unlike films in cinemas or on video and DVD.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Ofcom's Broadcasting Code sets the standards for television that broadcasters must follow and takes into account the British Board of Film Classification's guidelines and classification decisions in its guidance to broadcasters. The Code also includes rules for protecting children, such as a watershed on television to prevent unsuitable material being shown before 9pm when children could be watching.

Football: Sportsgrounds

Lord Faulkner of Worcester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will ensure that all Premier League clubs comply with the Sports Grounds Safety Authority's Accessible Stadia guide by August 2017, and what steps they will take to monitor progress toward that goal.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Minister for Sport and her officials meet regularly with both the Premier League and the Football League and will ensure that the matter of accessible stadia and compliance with the Accessible Stadia Guide remain high on the agenda with both organisations.

Football: Sportsgrounds

Lord Faulkner of Worcester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which clubs in the Premier League and Football League currently comply with the Sports Grounds Safety Authority's Accessible Stadia guide.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We do not hold this information.

Sportsgrounds: Safety

Lord Faulkner of Worcester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role the Sports Grounds Safety Authority will play in delivering accessible sports grounds.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We are in discussions with the Sports Grounds Safety Authority on what role they will play in delivering accessible sports grounds.

Football: Sportsgrounds

Lord Faulkner of Worcester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether additional funding will be provided to Level Playing Field to provide guidance and support to Premier League clubs in reaching their targets to provide accessible facilities and services by August 2017.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: There is no specific funding available to enable the charity Level Playing Field to provide guidance and support to Premier League clubs in reaching individual targets on accessible facilities and services.I understand that it is a matter for individual Premier League Clubs to determine whether they use the services of Level Playing Field in order to help them reach their specific targets in providing accessible facilities and services.

Ministry of Defence

Defence Equipment

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to integrate the use in military operations of unmanned vehicles in the air, at sea, and on land.

Earl Howe: Unmanned vehicles already play an important role in UK Armed Forces' operations across all environments. On the basis of the Government's National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review of November 2015, the Department is continuing to examine where unmanned systems may offer advantages over manned alternatives and to invest in new unmanned capabilities. For example, the Department is more than doubling the number of armed remotely piloted aircraft available to the UK Armed Forces under the Protector programme to replace the existing Reaper aircraft, and is also developing high-end technologies - including in collaboration with France and the US - under a future Unmanned Combat Air System programme.Throughout the Department's development and integration of unmanned systems, the policy is that a human must always be responsible for any decisions on targeting.

Armed Forces: Recruitment

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will implement the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Joint Committee on Human Rights to raise the minimum age of armed forces’ recruitment to 18; and if not, why not.

Earl Howe: All recruitment into the UK military is voluntary and no young person under the age of 18 years may join our Armed Forces unless their application is accompanied by the formal written consent of their parent or guardian. We take the duty of care towards all recruits seriously, in particular those under 18 years of age. We have robust, effective and independently verified safeguards in place to ensure that under-18s are cared for properly.The Armed Forces do not intend to phase out the recruitment of personnel under the age of 18. Our policies on under-18s in Service are robust and comply with national and international law. In addition to the comprehensive welfare system that is in place for all Service personnel we remain fully committed to meeting our obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, and have taken steps to bestow special safeguards on young people under the age of 18.The provision of education and training for 16-year-old school leavers provides a route into the Armed Forces that complies with Government education policy and offers a significant foundation for emotional, physical and educational development throughout an individual's career.All recruits aged under 18 receive key skills education in literacy and numeracy, should they need it, and all are enrolled onto apprenticeships. The Armed Forces remain the UK's largest apprenticeship provider, equipping young people with valuable and transferable skills for life. Over 95% of all recruits, no matter what their age or prior qualifications, enrol in an apprenticeship each year. The Armed Forces offer courses in a wide range of skills, such as engineering, information and communications technology, construction, driving, and animal care. Ofsted regularly inspects our care of newly joined young recruits, and we are very proud of the standards we achieve.Our policy on under-18s is published in Part 2 of Joint Service Publication 898, "Defence Direction and Guidance on Training, Education and Skills", available at the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/433762/20141126-JSP_898_Part2_Guidance_v1_1.pdf

Department for Communities and Local Government

Council Tax

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the expected yield of an increase of two per cent in the council tax levied by each local authority with adult social care responsibilities, and in each case how much that is per (1) head of population, and (2) number of households.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Government announced on 17 December 2015, Official Report, Column 2238-2241, that Local Authorities with social care responsibilities will be able to increase their council tax by up to 2% above the core referendum principles of 2% (4% in total) which is expected to raise an extra £2billion by 2019/20. A breakdown of the £2billion, by how much individual local authorities could raise, has been made and can be viewed at the following link or in the attached document.https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/486708/Core_spending_power_supporting_information.xlsx



Supporting Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 381.72 KB)

Social Rented Housing

Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have conducted a full assessment of the impact of the proposed one per cent cut in rent for social housing tenants on the eight Community Land Trusts (CLTs) that are Registered Providers and whether they will take steps to ensure exemptions for CLTs.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Government is committed to reducing welfare spending and is confident that registered providers will be able to adapt and manage these changes. The Welfare Reform and Work Bill provides for registered providers to apply for an exemption from the rent reductions if their financial viability is jeopardised. However, we do not expect providers to budget on the basis that an exemption will be automatically granted, as they should be making all possible efforts to manage the reductions.The Government has made an assessment of the impact of the rent reduction measures (attached). This is at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/impact-assessments/IA15-006F.pdf.



Impact Assessment
(PDF Document, 63.81 KB)

HM Treasury

National Insurance Contributions

Lord Green of Deddington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many persons were paying National Insurance contributions in the most recent period for which data are available, and how many of those were citizens of the EU10 countries at the time they first registered for a National Insurance number.

Lord O'Neill of Gatley: In 2012-13 it is estimated that 26.8m individuals are liable to National Insurance Contributions from earned income or self-employed profits across the different classes of National Insurance.This is estimated using the latest available outturn from the Survey of Personal Income (SPI) for 2012-13. The SPI does not contain information on the nationality of individuals in the sample.Calculating the number of individuals in 2012-13 who were paying National Insurance Contributions who were citizens of the EU when they first registered for a National Insurance number is complex and cannot be done quickly.However, HM Revenue and Customs are planning to produce more data early in 2016 on this issue.

Social Security Benefits

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of (1) the number of citizens of other EU countries, other than the Republic of Ireland, who are working in the UK; (2) how many of those are receiving (a) tax credits, and (b) other in-work benefits; (3) how many of the people claiming such benefits have lived in the UK for less than four years; (4) how many UK citizens are working in other EU countries other than the Republic of Ireland; and (5) how many of these are receiving in-work benefits in those countries.

Lord O'Neill of Gatley: The information is not available in the format requested.HM Revenue and Customs are planning to publish further information relating to EEA Nationals receiving tax credits early in 2016 once the information has been properly collated.

Cabinet Office

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Lord Oates: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the total annual cost of the ministerial special advisers, including members of the Council of Economic Advisers, who were in post on 1 September.

Lord Bridges of Headley: Information on the cost of special advisers, which I have attached for information, was published on 17 December on gov.uk.



List of Special Advisers- 17 December 2015
(PDF Document, 333.92 KB)

Department of Health

Chiropody: Training

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with Health Education England to ensure that the number of chiropody and podiatry student commissions for 2016–17 is sufficient to meet demand.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Health Education England (HEE) has been established to ensure the National Health Service has access to the right numbers of staff, at the right time and with the right skills. In doing so, HEE works with key external stakeholders to develop its National Workforce Plan for England which sets out the number of training places it will commission in the year ahead.HEE will formally publish the 2016-17 National Workforce Plan for England in January 2016. In both 2014/15 and 2015/16, HEE commissioned 362 training places in Podiatry and Chiropody across England, maintaining the current supply.

Dermatology: Drugs

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the number of patients who are unable to access dermatology specials when they need them.

Lord Prior of Brampton: We have made no such assessment.

Dermatology: Drugs

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to reviewing the process for the price setting of dermatology specials, and according to what timeframe.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the alternative processes for the NHS tariff price setting of dermatology specials, including the addition of NHS manufacturers’ costings in the tariff setting process.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the level of mark-ups on dermatology specials, what consideration they have given to reforming the process by which English NHS tariff prices are set.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Drug Tariff sets out what National Health Service dispensing contractors will be paid for the products supplied as part of providing pharmaceutical services and the fees for providing those services in primary care.The current arrangements in the Drug Tariff for paying for specials, including dermatological specials, were introduced in 2011. It is recognised that there can be variations in the price of some specials, which is why we are considering further possible improvements in the arrangements that govern the price the NHS pays. These include expanding the number of products covered by these arrangements and improving the data used to set the prices.

NHS: Drugs

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the risk of a conflict of interest when members of the Association of Pharmaceutical Specials Manufacturers both provide the reference prices from which to set the NHS tariff prices for specials in the primary care sector and supply those specials to community pharmacists.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Members of the Association of Pharmaceutical Specials Manufacturers do not provide the Department with reference price data for their products. Individual manufacturers provide data on their sales volumes and selling prices to the Department under a memorandum of understanding between manufacturers and the Department. This data is then used to set a reimbursement price which reflects the price at which community pharmacies purchased these products in the quarter before.

Diabetes

Lord Morris of Aberavon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they are giving to recent research by Professor Jeffrey Bluestone and others at the University of California on the immune system of those with type 1 diabetes; and whether funding will be made available to diabetes researchers in the UK to keep pace with such developments.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Research relating to immunotherapy for type 1 diabetes is being carried out by researchers at the University of California and at other institutions internationally. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is funding research relating to immunotherapy for type 1 diabetes at the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre. In addition, the NIHR funds a wide range of other research relating to diabetes.The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including immunotherapy for type 1 diabetes. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.

Care Homes: Learning Disability

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment the Department of Health, NHS England, or the Care Quality Commission, have made of the availability of residential care for people with learning difficulty at the rates that local authorities across England are now able to pay for such accommodation; and what information the Care Quality Commission has on the availability of such accommodation as part of their market oversight function.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Information about the availability of residential care for people with learning difficulties and the fee rates paid by local authorities for these services is not collected centrally. Commissioning adult social care is a matter for local authorities as they are best placed to understand the needs their local people and communities, and how best to meet them.The Department has put in place a range of Sector-Led Improvement support to help local authorities to improve their commissioning practice, and to comply with the statutory guidance. For example the Department funds the Local Government Association (LGA) and Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) to deliver, through their regional networks, practical risk assessment tools and hands-on improvement support delivered by a cohort of professional experts.The Department has also worked with ADASS, LGA and others to co-produce a set of commissioning standards, Commissioning for Better Outcomes that was re-launched in October 2015. These standards amplify the good practice set out in the statutory guidance, and provide a further practical resource on which to base local risk assessment and to guide improvement support and action planning where required. The standards are attached.There has been no assessment by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) of the availability of residential care for people with learning difficulty at the rates that local authorities across England are now able to pay for such accommodation and the CQC holds no information on the availability of such accommodation as part of its Market Oversight function. This is because these issues fall outside the scope of the Market Oversight Scheme.



Commissioning for Better Outcomes
(PDF Document, 698.38 KB)

Hospital Beds

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the latest assessment available to the Department of Health or NHS England of the annual loss of bed days to the NHS owing to the inability to discharge people from acute hospitals who do not need clinically to be occupying a bed in those hospitals; what is the estimated cost of such occupancy; and what assessment has been made of the cost-effectiveness of the NHS purchasing accommodation directly in nursing or residential care homes for such patients when a local authority is unable to do so.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The latest figures show that between April and October 2015, there were 1,041,587 delayed transfer of care. The Department has made no formal estimate of the costs of delayed discharge to the National Health Service or of the cost-effectiveness of the NHS purchasing accommodation directly in nursing or residential care homes for such patients when a local authority is unable to do so.It is recognised that such delayed discharges do use resource which could be deployed elsewhere, and all parts of the NHS and those with responsibility outside it, are continually looking for ways in which to reduce the number of delays.

Abortion: Northern Ireland

Lord Rogan: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 17 December (HL4320), whether the "private arrangements" for residents of Northern Ireland to access an abortion in England include a requirement for individuals to pay for such services.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Yes, women travelling from Northern Ireland to England for an abortion generally pay for the procedure themselves.

NHS: Negligence

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total cost of clinical negligence in hospitals in each of the last 10 years.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The information requested is in the following table, provided by the NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA).All payments made by the NHSLA in respect of clinical negligence claims against the NHS in hospitals in each of the last ten years.Year of PaymentTotal Paid £'0002005/06560,3082006/07579,3902007/08633,3252008/09769,2262009/10786,9912010/11863,3982011/121,277,3722012/131,258,8802013/141,192,5402014/151,169,587Notes:1. December 20152. These figures cover England only.3. They represent payments under the various NHS LA Clinical negligence schemes:‒ Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts;‒ Existing Liabilities Scheme; and‒ Ex-Regional Health Authorities Scheme.4. It excludes private insurance cases.

Biomedicines

Baroness Brinton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what work has been undertaken by NHS England to ensure that prescribers and commissioners have the right information to introduce biosimilar medicines in a safe and sustainable way.

Baroness Brinton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what provisions have been put in place by NHS England to ensure that patients who are being prescribed biosimilar medicines are informed about the medicines and have given their consent.

Lord Prior of Brampton: NHS England is undertaking a programme of work to engage, inform and support commissioners, clinicians, pharmacists, patients and others in their consideration of the optimal use of biosimilar medicines. In September 2015 they published a What is a Biosimilar Medicine? guide, which provides an update for clinical and non-clinical stakeholders about the developing role of biosimilar medicines in the NHS in England and to support the safe, effective and consistent use of all biological medicines, including biosimilar medicines, to the benefit of patients. A copy is attached and is also available at:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/biosimilar-guide.pdfNHS England has also convened a National Biosimilar Medicines Group, chaired by the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer, whose role includes improving education and understanding of both the theory and practical considerations related to biosimilar medicines.Guidance to prescribers requires them to explain to patients the likely benefits, risks and burdens, including serious and common side effects of treatments they are proposing. The What is a Biosimilar Medicine? guide makes it clear that patients’ needs preferences and values are an essential part of evidence based medicine. Local collaborations involving both patients and clinicians have been successful in introducing biosimilars.



What is a biosimilar medicine?
(PDF Document, 428.06 KB)

Drugs: Safety

Baroness Brinton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which organisation has responsibility for ensuring compliance with EU legislation on pharmacovigilance.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has the responsibility for ensuring compliance with European Union legislation on pharmacovigilance.